Cockatoos are one of the most adored pets in the world. They become excellent companions if given time and love. Besides possessing many qualities, cockatoos are also smart. Let me tell you how.
Like children, cockatoos have the ability to learn things. For example, they can learn to mimic human sounds, sing, dance, and perform tricks. In fact, a recent study says cockatoos can even learn to assemble things and craft tools. [1]
Another research study says cockatoos are smarter than 4-year-old children. [2] But is this applicable to just pet cockatoos? No, studies show wild cockatoos are just as smart as pet cockatoos. [3]
Very few birds possess all these qualities, and this shows how smart cockatoos are. Now that we know cockatoos are smart let’s talk about all the smart things that cockatoos can do.
1- Cockatoos mimic words and sounds
Cockatoos are great at mimicking and copying sounds. They can learn to speak tens of words but if trained well, they can learn long phrases and can even sing. Many cockatoo keepers have shared their videos on YouTube showing how their cockatoos sing or say phrases.
I had a neighbor whose cockatoo could make a long conversation with some general phrases. He was so smart and well-trained that it felt like I was talking to a 5-year-old child. But he was an exceptional case; most cockatoos speak only a few words.
2- Cockatoos dance to music
Yes, you read right, cockatoos dance to music. They enjoy music so much that they start dancing to it. They shake their head, fluff their crest, open their wings, and jump to show their excitement.
Some cockatoos are so good at dancing that they even match music beats. I haven’t seen this in any bird except a few other parrots. So probably, cockatoos really enjoy music as we do and they are also good at expressing their excitement.
3- Cockatoos can perform tricks
Cockatoos can learn to perform tricks like riding a miniature bicycle and solving puzzles. They can learn a lot of other things as well. For example, a friend of mine has a very old cockatoo, probably 30 years old, and he could switch ON/OFF the lights, open his feed jar, and a few other things.
There are videos on YouTube showing how some cockatoos can learn puzzles and solve them. Their ability to learn the positions of objects and put the same objects in the same positions shows how good they are at learning.
4- Cockatoos have innovated foraging
You might have seen animals and birds eating from open bins but did you ever see one opening the cap of a bin to find food?
In Sydney, cockatoos have learned to open recycle bins to eat leftover food waste. According to a study, almost 486 cockatoos were observed, and almost 10% could open the bins. Once a cockatoo opened the bin, the rest followed, and all enjoyed the treats. [4]
Though cockatoos create a bit of a mess when they open the bins but this is also helping save them from starvation. Moreover, many old cockatoos that cannot fly around the city looking for food can now easily find it. So surely, cockatoos have over-smarted other animals.
5- Cockatoos can be potty trained
Like cats and dogs, cockatoos can be potty trained to poop in one spot rather than pooping everywhere. They are intelligent enough to understand commands and do things for rewards. This behavior shows how smart and keen cockatoos are to learn.
Final thoughts
Cockatoos are gifted with great intelligence and abilities that very few birds possess. This makes them one of the best pets you can have.
